The present invention relates to a hardening resin composition suitable for use as the flooring material for a food processing factory, refrigerated warehouse, cold storage and others, in particular.
The flooring material made of the conventional hardening resin composition of which shrinkage during hardening is large may be peeled from the base material or cracked. Therefore, such a resin composition is required to be small in shrinkage in hardening.
When a hardening resin composition having a strong odor is used as the flooring material for a food processing factory, refrigerated warehouse or cold storage, odor is transferred to the food, and the commercial value of the food is sacrificed. Also, the strong specific odor of the hardening resin may give discomfort to the workers applying the hardening resin on the floor or the workers in the food processing factory, and even poisoning symptoms may be experienced. Accordingly, the resin composition before hardening and the flooring material after hardening are both required to be weak in the specific odor of the resin composition.
In a food processing factory, especially, since water is used in large quantities, it is required that the flooring material after hardening possess excellent resistance to water.
Furthermore, in a food processing factory, since the floor is frequently disinfected with hot water, the flooring material after hardening is required to be excellent in durability against hot water.
On the other hand, when the hardening resin composition is used for repairing the flooring material in a refrigerated warehouse or cold storage used at low temperature, it is needed to repair without stopping the operation of the refrigerating machine. It is accordingly required that the hardening resin composition can be cured at low temperature.
The conventional hardening resin compsition for flooring material contains the following hardening resin as main component.
Epoxy resin* PA0 Unsaturated polyester resin* PA0 Methyl methacrylate* PA0 Dicyclopentenyloxyethyl acrylate or dicyclopentenyloxyethyl methacrylate** FNT *: BOSUI JANARU, May 1988, pp. 36-115, published by Shinju-Sha FNT **: Japanese Patent Publication No. 43337/1986
However, since the epoxy resin takes a long time to cure, and is not hardened at below 0.degree. C., it cannot be used in repairing of refrigerated warehouse or cold storage floors.
The unsaturated polyester resin has strong odor, and therefore must be avoided in odor-sensitive food processing factory, refrigerated warehouse or cold storage. Still more, the unsaturated polyester resin takes a long time to cure at low temperature, and the working efficiency is poor.
Methyl methacrylate has a strong odor before hardening, and is large in the shrinkage so that peeling from the base material or cracking may be caused.
Dicyclopentenyloxyethyl acrylate or dicyclopentenyloxyethyl methacrylate are hardened in a short time at low temperature and have little odor. However, the hardened matter obtained from such hardening resin is poor in durability against water or hot water.